A resident in Dong Thap Province standing by a rainwater harvesting system donated by Save the Children and HSBC. Photo credit: Save the Children

Save the Children have donated 240 rainwater harvesting systems to poor families in 12 communes of Dong Thap Provinces under a project funded by HSBC.

The devices, worth US$26,000 in total, aim to support the locals in the flood-prone areas to generate and store safe water for their household activities, especially during and after the flood seasons, the NGO said in a statement on June 6.

The award is part of a US$556,672 project in Mekong delta funded by HSBC from 2013 to 2015.

The Mekong Safe Water project is part of Save the Children’s water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) program which aims to increase the use of safe water and sanitation by children and their families in the most vulnerable communities and to improve hygiene knowledge and practice by the children and their families.

Through improving the safe drinking water supplies, providing hygienic materials and facilities, training and communications promotion, the project is expected to directly reach 10,000 children and 48,000 people in the community.

“Provision of clean water and hygienic sanitation facilities is part of Save the Children’s humanitarian response because it is crucial in avoiding disease and saving lives during and in the aftermath of a disaster,” Gunnar Andersen, Save the Children in Vietnam’s country director, said.

“Better access to safe water and other sanitation facilities reduces the risks of diseases and improve people's hygienic behavior,” he said.

Through the project, Save the Children installed eight solar-powered water treatment units, upgraded the water supply systems as well as provided sanitation facilities for 12 schools in Cao Lanh and Thanh Binh districts in Dong Thap Province.

The agency also supported the instalment of 184 bio-sand water tanks for 184 households and provided 1799 water treatment kits for poor households in the 12 communes.

Save the Children began to work in Dong Thap in 2003. Currently, the agency is implementing projects on disaster risk reduction, climate change adaptation, maternal health and newborn care, and WASH in Ca Mau, Dong Thap, and Tien Giang.